Rifles, such as AR-15 type rifles, typically have a hand guard that is attachable to an upper receiver. Prior art hand guards typically have a rail for fitting accessories. The prior art upper receiver typically has a rail. Typically, when the prior art hand guard is attached to the prior art upper receiver the rails work in combination thereby providing a longer rail for attaching accessories. However, the resulting combination of a prior art hand guard rail and upper receiver rail is typically not continuous in that a section of the combined rail proximate to or at the point of contact between the prior art hand guard rail and the prior art upper receiver rail is unavailable for use. Therefore, there is a need for a better hand guard and upper receiver to provide a continuous rail for attaching accessories thereto.
Moreover, prior art hand guards do not have removable or replaceable rails to allow a single hand guard to be quickly configured for various mission or hobby requirements. Therefore, there is also a need for hand guards that resolve this issue.